Laureano, eventually seen by one account
as "the heir to Royals second baseman Frank White," went on to play in
six affiliated seasons. But he never fulfilled his goal, or that
promise. He made it to AAA, but no higher.

By
1986, the then 18-year-old was playing stateside, for single-A
Burlington. There, he hit .275 in 130 games, also hitting seven home
runs and knocking in 37.

He moved to the Royals' full
single-A team in Appleton for 1987, hitting .323 there, with 16 home
runs and 87 RBIs. He also stole 19 bases.

After a year
at single-A Virginia and Baseball City in 1988, where he hit just .222
between them, Laureano played at Baseball City full time in 1989. He
also made the Florida State League All-Star team.